Dispenser for storage bags



Oct. 29, 1957 N. D. COMMISSO ETAL 2,811,280

DISPENSER FOR STORAGE BAGS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed April 12, 1955 9, 9 7N. D. COMMISSO ETAL 2,811,280

' DISPENSER FOR STORAGE BAGS Filed April 12, 1955 2 She etsSheet 2United States PatentO DISPENSER FOR STORAGE *BAGS Nicholas D.Commisso,-Balrnyra,-Richard D.-,Hayes, ,East Rochester, and. Richard M.Samuels, Brighton, N. Y., assignors, by.- mesne. assignments,-to TextronInc., a corporation of Rhode Island Application April 12,1955, SerialNo-.'50(l,818 4 Claims. (Cl. 221w48) The invention relates to a'dispenser forstorage bags.

An object of the inventionis to.provide a new or generally improved andmore satisfactorystorage bag dispenser.

Another object is to provide a dispenser for. storage bags which permitsonly a single storage, bag to be removed with each dispensing action.

Still another object is to provide a dispenser containing a nested.arrangement of storage bags, each of which is adapted to be individuallyremoved, therefrom without alfecting the nested arrangement of theremaining storage bags.

A further object is the provision of a dispenser having an enclosingwrapper which functions to contain and protect a nested arrangement ofstorage bags, and which is provided with perforated or weakenedareaswhich may be easily severed to permit removal-of, thestorage bags fromthe wrapper.

A still further object is to provide aistoragebagdispenser having meansfor supporting the .dispenserwith the weight of the dispenser contentsdirected in a direction away from the dispensing opening.

.A still further object is to provide a storage bag dis penser which issimple, convenient, and reliable in use,

can be easily and economically manufactured, and-presents a neat compactappearance. 7

These and other desirable objects may be attained in .the mannerdisclosed as an illustrative embodiment of the invention inthe followingdescription and in the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, inwhich: Fig. 1 is a front elevation of the'storage' bag dispenser ofthepresent invention;

Fig. 2 is a rear elevation of the structurev shown -in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a view illustrating the device suspended from a supportingwall, shown in part, ready for use;

Fig. 4 is a front elevation-of thestorage bag support member shownremoved from the enclosing envelope or wrapper;

Fig. 5 illustrates the support member of Fig. 4 in opened or expandedposition, with a portion of itsfront wall being broken away, and showingthe storage bags in their collapsed and nested position;

Fig. 6 is a transverse vertical section takenthrough a I partiallycollapsed storage bag approximately on the line through a modified formof theinventiomand i2 Fig. 12 is a front or'face' view-of the storagebag support member shown in Fig; 11, in its opened or expanded position.1 p U The same reference numerals throughout the -several 5 1 viewsindicate the same parts.

With reference to" the drawings, the storage bag*dispenser of thepresent invention includes an outer-or enclosing envelope or wrapperor'container 21 made, preferably, from a thin-flexible sheet material,as-for example a translucent polyethylene plastic. In formingtheenvelope, the end portions of the sheet material are overlapped andsealed to eachother by 'heat welding, or any other suitable means, toform a seam as shown; at -23. The material is-then flattenedwith theseam 23 disposed approximately centrally of the rear-surface, and asec-0nd heat welded seam 25 is formed across the lower-end of the material,slightly above its lower edge. t

The ;upperend of the-envelope 21 remains open until a nested arrangementof storage'bags is inserted therein, after which the upper portion oftheenvelope' is overlappingly folded to provide a reinforced or thickenedtop portion 27, as-shown irrPig; 8. Since the shee tymaterial employedin forming the enclosing envelope 21 and the storage bags is extremelythin, the conventionalfcrosshatching of these elements shown in sectionhas;1 been omitted'from Figs; 6 and 8-11 'for'thesake'of clarity endsimplicity. Spot weldst29 securethe folds of the upper portion of theenvelope together, after' which the thickened portion 27 isprovided'with'an approximatelyjcentral opening 31 whichis'adapted toreceive a suitable fastener, as'for example a, nail,- for supportinguthedispenser for display or during use.

Alongthe front and rear surfaces 33 and 35,.respectively, oftheenvelope" 21, adjacent. to either the righLor left edge thereof, areprovided a 'plurality .ofspaced slits forming weakened areasontearlines' '37 and 39, "alo1ng Which the envelope 21 maybe easilysevered to provide astorage bag"dispensing opening, as showninl'Eig..,.1.0.

Since the slits are almost imperceptible, acoloredbrokenlinetmaybepplaced alongsidetof the'slits to calllthe'users attention tothe tear lines and further, suitable instruc- ,tions or symbols, as forexample'as'shown by the-arrow 41, may be provided on the envelope, ifdesired. In

, addition colored squares 143 and45, or other;fsuitable symbols, are,provided in positions as shown. infFig.,-1

to.denote alternative areas which may be gripped by .the

form a front andrear wall 49 and user whentearing awayjthe removableedge portion-.of the envelope.

Contained within'the envelope 21 are the storage bags, neatlynestedwithin a support member 47 whichma intains the bags in their nestedarrangementforproper'dispensing. In one form of the invention, thesupport member 47 .includes a sheet of relativelystiff material, ,-.asfor example cardboard, doubled, or folded upon itselfato t 51,respectively, connected by a hinge portion'53, see Figs. 5v and '9. ,Toprevent. accidental rupture of the enclosing wrapper or envelope' 21,thefr'ont and rearwalls 49 and 53 of theisupport member are providedwith roundedcorners asshown at 55.

The storage bags 57, shown in Figs..6 and 7, are made of very thinflexible sheet'material, assforexarnpletranslucent polyethylene plastic,to.permit a good supply of storage bags to be disposedwithin thedispenser envelope without providing a bulkyor heavy package Eachi of-the stora'gebags is-formed of a-se'arnless sleeve, laid flat,

-thenrclos'ed, asfor'example -by aheat weld 59.

. iZIn: nestingxthe'i storage: :bags, a pluralityof bags; as for exampleten bags, are first stacked upon each other in their flat collapsedcondition, with their closed ends being arranged at the same end of thestack. Then, the stacked v. ir1'angen ent of storage bags is folded as aunit at "61 by moving the open ends of the storage. bagsto'wardstheirclosed ends. This first fold 61 is spaced from the' closed ends of thestacked bags a distance slightly less than the width of the rear wall ofthe supporting member. The

.. portion of the stacked storage bags between the fold 61 and theiropen ends is then folded further as a unit in a serpentine fashion, asseen in Figs. 9 and 10, by providing folds 63, 65, and 67, the number offolds of course being dependent upon the length of the storage bags.Allfolds, subsequent to the first fold 61, are disposed to one side of aplane passing the closed ends of the storage bags and the first fold 61.It will be noted that the folds 65 I and 67 are offset to the right ofthe folds 61 and 63, re-

benoted that all of the folds are spaced laterally away from the closedends of the storage bags so as to insure that these ends may be easilyreached by the user without any interference from any other portions orfolds of the bags. By this stacking and nesting arrangement, dispensingof only a single storage bag at one time, as herein after described, ismade possible.

The storage bags in their nested arrangement, are then placed betweenthe front and rear walls 49 and 51, re-

spectively, of the support member, with the closed ends of the storagebags lying adjacent to the free edges of the walls of the supportmember, as shown in Fig. 4. The

7 support member, along with the nested storage bags, is

then disposed into the envelope or wrapper 21, with the openside edge ofthe support member adjacent to the removable side edge of the wrapper,as shown in Fig. 1.

As previously. described, the top portion of the wrapper '21 is thenfolded over upon itself and heat welded at spaced points as shown at 29.

J Secured, as by the staple 69, to the thickened portion '27 of thewrapper 21 is a supporting tab 71 having an adhesive. film 73 onthe-uppermost portion of its rear surface. A protective strip 75 coversthe adhesive film 73 and may be easily peeled away just prior to use, asshown in Fig.2. The supporting tab 71 as shown in Figs. 1-3, .isfixed tothe corner of the envelope 21 above its removable edge so that theenvelope when supported solely by the tab,71, will assume an inclinedposition, as shown in Fig. 3, with its open edge facing in an upwarddirection. In this manner, the weight of the support member 47, and thestorage bags nested therein, is directed away from the open edge of thewrapper 21, and thus eliminates any tendency for the storage bags toaccidentally fall therefrom. If desired, the storage bag dispenser maybe supported both by a fastener passing through the opening 31 and thesupporting tab 71. In this case it is desirable to first support thedispenser on the fastener, and then secure the tab 71 after the envelope21 has been pivoted into a position as shown in Fig. 3.

In use, the removable edge of the envelope 21 is first severed bytearing along the weakened areas 37 and 39 as heretofore descibed. Thedispenser is then secured to a suitable surface, as for example, thedoor of a kitchen cabinet 77 (shown in part in Fig. 3), by either afastener passed through the opening or by the support tab 71, or both ifdesired. When supported solely by a fastener, it

will be noted that the top portion of the wrapper 21 is of suificientthickness to prevent theweight of the dispenser contents from tearingthe wrapper in the vicinity of the fastener. The user may then reachinto the envelope, grasp the closed end of a storage bag, and apply apull approximately perpendicular to the open edge of the envelope. Acut-out or access opening 79 is provided in the front wall 49 of thesupport member, 47 to enable the user to more easily reachthe closedendsof the storage bags. It is believed evident from Fig. 10 that witheach dispensing action the user removes the storage bag having itsclosed end nearest to the front wall 49 of the support member, and thateach storage bag unfolds itself, when pulled outwardly, withoutaffecting the nested relationship of the remainder of the storage bags.By placing the closed ends of the storage bags adjacent to the free endsof the front and rear walls of the support member 47, the user can moreeasily grasp only a single bag, and in addition the user is insured thatno foreign matter, such as dust, has entered into the bags.

In the second form ofthe invention, the construction of the wrapper 21and the storage bags 57 are the same as heretofore described. In thismodification, however, the support member 81 and the nested arrangementof the storage bags has been changed. The support member, as shown inFigs. 11 and i2 is provided with a front wall 83, a rear wall 85hingedly connected at 87 to the front wall, and an additionalreinforcing or guide wall 89, hingedly connected at 91 to fold betweenthe front and rear walls 83 and 85, respectively. Rounded surfaces areprovided on all rounded corners to prevent accidental puncture of thewrapper 21-by the support member 81. The storage bags 57 are folded at93, 95, and 97, after they have been stacked flat in overlapping flatrelationship, in a manner generally similar to that describedpreviously, with all the folds disposed on the same side'of a planepassing through the closed ends of the storage bags and the fold 93, andwith the fold 97 being laterally spaced to the right of the fold 93. Aswith the first described embodiment, the number of folds will, ofcourse, depend upon the length of the storage bags, it being understoodthat the number of folds can be varied providing the same generalfolding arrangement is maintained. With this modified construction,however, the free ends of the storage bags extend in the same generaldirection as the closed ends of the bags.

The folded storage bags are then disposed between the front and rearwalls 83 and 85, respectively, of the support member 81, with the guidewall 89 having its free end adjacent to the last fold 97, as shown inFig. 11. The nested arrangement of storage bags is placed within theenvelope 21 and are dispensed therefrom as explained above I in regardto the first described structure- The added guide wall 89 on the supportmember provides an additional stiffener holding the storage bags intheir nested position, and in addition gives greater assurance that thestorage bags, during dispensing, will each unfold in a certain sequence,with the fold 97 being the last to unfold. To assist the user ingrasping the closed ends of the nested storage bags, a cut-out or accessopening 99 is provided as shown in Fig. 12, this opening, when thesupport member. is folded as in Fig. 11, lying forwardly of the closedends of the nested storage bags.

As an added feature of the dispenser the storage bags, prior to folding,may be stacked so as to have the closed ends of alternate storage bagsspaced laterally from each other. This, of course, will not affect thedispensing action, but will permit the user to more easily take hold ofonly a singlebag.

Withoutadding any appreciable weight to the dispenser itself, it isobvious that the exterior surface of the envelope 21 can carry variousindicia, such as the trademark of the manufacturer, suggested uses forthe storage bags, or even advertising material.

With either of the modifications described, the nested arrangement. ofstorage bags provides the user with a convenient and compact dispenserwhich is simple to use and which insures the user that only a singlestorage bag will be removed with each dispensing action. Further, thedispenser is complete in itself and requires no special technique infolding the storage bags or loadingthe dispenser.envelope itself, andtherefore satisfactory operation of the unit is not dependent upon anytraining or skill of the user.

It is seen from the foregoing disclosure that the above mentionedobjects of the invention are well fulfilled. It is to be understood thatthe foregoing disclosure is given by way of illustrative example only,rather than by way of limitation, and that without departing from theinvention, the details may be varied within the scope of the appendedclaims. For example, certain features of the invention may be used indispensing a supply of bags which are arranged in flatwise or non-foldedrelation within the outer container. Also the tear line 37, used inopening the outer container, is not necessarily parallel to one sideedge of the outer container, but may under certain conditions bediagonal, or may be parallel to the top or bottom edge.

What is claimed is:

1. A dispenser for plastic storage bags, said dispenser including aflexible envelope closed at its bottom and side edges, said envelopehaving its top portion provided with a plurality of overlapping foldsconnected together to form a thickened top edge, a fastener receivingopening extending through said thickened top edge approximatelycentrally thereof, a support member contained within said envelope, saidsupport member being formed of stiff sheet material and including atleast a first and second wall connected to each other along one edge bya flexible hinge portion, a nested arrangement of plastic storage bagspositioned between said first and second walls of said support member,with the closed ends of said storage bags disposed adjacent to the openedge of said support member, said nested arrangement of storage bagsformed by a plurality of collapsed storage bags stacked in overlappedrelationship and folded as a unit along a plurality of fold lines, saidplurality of fold lines including a first fold line spaced from theclosed ends of said stacked storage bags by a first distance slightlyless than the width of said first and second walls of said supportmember, with the distances between subsequent fold lines being less thansaid first distance, all of said subsequent fold lines being disposed toone side of a plane passing through said first fold line and the closedends of said stacked storage bags, said subsequent fold lines beinglaterally spaced away from the closed ends of said stacked storage bagstoward said first fold line, said flexible envelope having a weakenedarea adjacent to said open edge of said support member, said weakenedarea forming a tear line along which said flexible envelope may besevered to provide a dispensing opening through which said storage bagsmay be individually removed without atfecting the nested arrangement ofsaid remaining storage bags, and a supporting tab secured to thethickened top edge of said flexible wrapper above said weakened area,said tab being adapted to be employed alone or in combination with afastener passing through a fastener receiving opening to support saiddispenser in an inclined position with the weight of its contentsextending in a direction away from said dispensing opening.

2. A construction as defined in claim 1, wherein said support memberincludes only a first and second wall.

3. A construction as defined in claim 1, wherein said support memberalso includes a third wall connected to one edge of one of said firstand second walls by a flexible hinge portion, said third wall having itsfree edge lying adjacent to the last fold line of said plurality of foldlines.

4. A dispenser for storage bags, said dispenser including a containerclosed at its bottom and side edges and having a reinforced top edge, asupport member positioned within said container, said support memberbeing formed of a stiff sheet material and including a first and secondwall of like configuration hingedly connected to each other along oneedge, a nested arrangement of storage bags disposed between said firstand second walls of said support member with their closed ends beingdisposed in a position remote from said hinge connection between saidfirst and second walls, said nested arrangement of storage bagsincluding a plurality of collapsed storage bags stacked in overlappingrelationship and folded as a unit in a serpentine manner along aplurality of fold lines, said plurality of fold lines including a firstfold line spaced from said closed ends of said storage bags by adistance slightly less than the Width of said support member, with thesubsequent fold lines lying between but laterally spaced from the closedends of said storage bags and said first fold line, said containerhaving a removable edge portion lying adjacent to said closed ends ofsaid storage bags and adapted to provide a dispensing opening throughwhich said storage bags may be individually removed without afiectingthe nested arrangement of the remaining storage bags, and means forsupporting said container in depending relationship with respect to asupport member.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS442,214 Allen Dec. 9, 1890 1,686,458 McColl Oct. 2, 1928 1,952,382MacGregor Mar. 27, 1934 2,005,490 Baxter June 18, 1935 2,348,041 WarnerMay 2, 1944 2,558,920 Baggs July 3, 1951

